DAC traffic is steady for DMVFailure rate above average for written test

CARSON CITY – After three days of the state’s new Driver Authorization Card (DAC) program, the early returns show traffic has been brisk and the failure rate above average, according to DMV officials.

For the first three days of the program, Jan. 2-4, DMV administered about 500 DAC written tests per day across the state. In some cases, heavy turnouts forced the agency to turn away applicants because driver examination capacities had been reached. Additional applicants were turned away for not having proper documentation.

The failure rate for DAC applicants on the written test was 71 percent, 14 points above the average for driver’s licenses, which is 57 percent.

Working with a smaller sampling, the pass rate on the driver’s skills tests has been 70 percent.

“We are seeing a few early trends,” said DMV Director Troy Dillard. “Test scores are improving on the re-tests and the applicants are doing better on the driving test than they are on the written test,” he added.

Dillard said the program is working the way DMV hoped it would. “The intent of the DAC program is to have drivers who are better informed and more knowledgeable about the rules of the road. That is happening. There is a learning curve for people not familiar with the rules of the road and those applying for the DAC are in a learning mode.”

Dillard said he hopes the DAC will also lead to a higher percentage of insured motorists. “Our law was patterned after Utah’s law and what they experienced in Utah was a significant drop in their rate of uninsured motorists. More insured motorists were a byproduct of the Utah law. If we can replicate that in Nevada we will have more drivers on the road who know the rules and have a higher rate of insured motorists. In the end, that would benefit all of us,” he added.